Last updated on December 17th, 2025 at 09:48 am
SET Pro HD – Card Game Review
SET Pro HD is a Card/Family/Education game from PlayMonster LLC, first launched in 15th July 2010.
It’s rated 4+ and currently has 8+ ratings on the App Store.
What Makes SET Pro HD Stand Out
SET® Pro HD, the official iPad app from the makers of the card game, is specially designed to exploit the iPad’s multi-touch, multi-player functionality to enable you to enjoy the Triple Matching Mania of the SET game. The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) says "So, what's better about Set Pro HD than either the earlier Set app or a deck of Set cards. Well, pretty much everything…..". See http://www.tuaw.com/2010/08/13/app-review-set-pro-hd/.
The SET game has won over 35 Best Game Awards. SET Pro HD enables you to find SETs at the speed of your brain. Using two hands you have the same speed advantage as you do in typing or playing the piano. The sense of a really fast player is, in fact, that of a piano player (see the YouTube demo – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eo_kY__glY – boy does this guy have good brain connections!). The SET game is also enjoyed when played with others. In multi-player game play there are no turns in the game. Up to four people can simultaneously play all using both hands. SET Pro HD removes all previous electronic limitations in all of its play modes, making this realization of the SET game a joy to play.
To find a SET you must recognize three cards on the gameboard of 12 cards in which each of the features, examined independently, are either the same on the 3 cards OR different on the 3 cards. That’s it. One rule. It is deceptively simple. Thus, it’s easy to learn. A 6 year old can do it. But it’s a challenge for life, and mastering it challenges college students and their professors. The game has two levels Basic and Advanced. All players, regardless of age need to learn using the Basic level. Once you get the idea down, move to the Advanced level where you will experience the depth and richness of the mental challenge of SET. The Advanced level is the complete SET game. Of course, since SET is a game for all ages, younger players may take longer to be able to play the full game. Basic level has 3 features that anyone can master. Advanced level has four features, which is a challenge for all.
When you want a challenge for just yourself, SET Pro HD includes 6 solitaire game modes, Classical SET, Rediscovery SET, Sprint SET, Marathon SET, Puzzle SET, and Arcade SET. In Classical SET play, SET Pro HD challenges you to get through the deck in the shortest time finding SETs. In Rediscovery SET you try to get 25 SETs in the shortest time, with the cards either being rearranged, or, with 3 cards randomly replaced every 10 seconds if you don’t find a SET. In Sprint SET you are challenged to get the most SETs in 60 or 90 seconds. You never run out of cards. In Marathon SET you must pace yourself to get the best scores. Puzzle SET challenges you to find 4 or 6 SETs in a fixed gameboard of cards. Arcade SET paces you as you play requiring you to find SETs faster and faster until you cry ‘uncle’. In all game modes you can play either Basic or Advanced Level.
In multiplayer mode, players tap their scorecards to take control of the board, and then tap-in their SET, or, after tapping they can swipe their scorecard (or tap the NO-SET icon) to gain additional points if they perceive that a NO-SET situation exists. A point is lost if 3 cards are selected that don’t make a SET, or if a player doesn’t tap the cards within the time limit.
For beginners, there is an interactive Tutorial, and Hints are provided in all the game modes. Players can choose to play in teams. Your scores can be kept in the STATS if you choose, and in STATS ALL your best scores and those of all your friends are ranked if players want to see their rankings.
Additional help and Tutorials are provided on the website http://www.setgame.com
This Card game offers engaging gameplay and regular updates for mobile players.
Player Feedback
As a newer release, SET Pro HD is building its player community. Early feedback suggests .
Recent Updates & Development
Latest Update: 31st July 2018
Recent improvements include:
This app has been updated by Apple to display the Apple Watch app icon.
Bug fixes
Download & Availability
SET Pro HD is available through the official App Store for iOS devices.
Requirements: Requires iPad Air / iPad Air (Cellular) / iPad Mini 2 (Retina) / iPad Mini 2 (Retina, Cellular) / iPad Air 2 / iPad Air 2 (Cellular) / iPad Mini 3 / iPad Mini 3 (Cellular) / iPad Mini 4 / iPad Mini 4 (Cellular) or later.
Compatible with iPhone and iPad devices.
Player Experience Highlights
Community Insight:
No need to buy because you can play it for free online.
Fantastic game. We only wish it didn't give away whether there are additional sets once the deck runs out by saying game over if there are none.
We have the card game & love being able to play on our IPad! Great for developing math skills in everyone! So fun no one would ever guess how educational it is! Worth every penny.
We have played your computer games and card games so we were very happy to find this for the iPad. Can't sign into Facebook though or put name in. Still says anonymous. Other than that gameplay is perfect.
Great implementation of the game, but we get weird bugs sometimes. We just had one where the game over dialogue blinks over and over again, in an infinite loop.
We love this game, and we got this version because it was from Set Enterprises, Inc. But we just found out that there is another app by Jayanthi Valluru, which is also compatible with Iphone. It would be great to have this app in our phone too… Thanks.
1- we learned to play with the cards oriented vertically, not horizontally, within a 4-wide, 3-tall grid. We really feel our play suffers using this foreign layout. Can there please be a rotate toggle?? 2- as many others have said, you can't listen to music while playing (?!??!!!!) 3- why in the hell does the game insist on repeatedly reverting to a "simple" deck!? Nobody who purchased this game wants that stupid feature.
We love this game, but it's really frustrating that it shuts off our music.
We keep getting an error when trying to sign in with Facebook. :( Also, how do you delete player names? Is there a way to restart the stats.
Set is a brilliant, classic game. This is a poor adaptation: it hijacks your system sound and is distinctly not HD. On any iPhone or iPad with a Retina display, this "HD" version looks jagged and rough. If you want a better portable version, pick up a deck of Set cards.
And who is that guy called Jeff Quinn? His records look insane. Warning: this game is for major geeks, not for normal people. The achievement in Basic Marathon mode seems impossible to reach.
Finally Set is on the iPad. We've been a fan of the game for a long time and this iPad version is perfect! We love the Tutorial to teach it to new people. The game has multiple modes which are all challenging and fun. It also keeps track of different achievements for you. You can play the classic game solo or with 2 to 4 friends. Overall we are very satisfy with the app. It would be nice to have an iPhone version too.
No problems with the app. Works well. Lots of fun.
We love this game…that said, sometimes it either stops dealing more cards or doesn't recognize that there isn't a set there. As a result, we get a horrible time while try to get it to work. Very frustrating.
Clearly, "SET Enterprizes" put a lot of effort into this game. Menus and gameplay are riddled with annoying transitions and animations. They provide you with over half a dozen gaudy backgrounds. There are new gameplay modes aren't much fun. Sadly, they neglected to make a user interface that works on a tablet. The buttons are too small, every operation feels like it takes two taps too many, and the main menu is convoluted. Oh, and of course it doesn't remember your deck preference and asks you every time. Multiplayer is especially awful. The "buzz in" button for each player is extremely tiny and in the heat of the moment will probably take several attempts to activate. Personally, we'd much prefer a simpler app. Merely ask us for the number of players and let the game begin. Settings need only include the deck (basic or full) and game end preference (marathon mode with time or number of points, or classic deck). And of course no stupid flips or dealing animations, sounds, achievements, or rule variation – just blissful gameplay.
It's unfortunate to see this classic card game beleaguered by another shoddy software implementation. Focuses more on frills like annoying animation of cards sliding while being dealt, intro music, and background images than actual gameplay; still lacks a setting to remember your preference to turn off the dumbed-down version of the game. Visual design is amateurish – even the splash screen content is misaligned from the actual rendered content on launch. Deleting this app.
We've been playing the original Set card game since 1992. It's easily the best designed new card game we've ever seen. Wonderful for teaching kids to think logically but also to "think out of the box", and a great way to keep your mind active and alert. This adaptation to the iPad is fabulous. No more dealing out cards, straightening them out, etc. More time to just play Set and have a ball. We don't usually write reviews, but this one is worth every penny and more. LOVE IT.
Great game! We own the real card version, but we have to say that we enjoy playing it on the iPad as well. Implementation is clean, works great. There is one important feature missing though, it is the ability to play against remote players. In our opinion, this would make it a 5-star game.
Love the variations and interface for all modes of this classic game! However, there is a glitch that makes using the IPod during gameplay a hassle; and please give some options for the background. The fuzzy woodgrain is offensive to look at.
We have been hoping that there would be an app. For this game and now there is! We highly recommend this game to people wether from this app. Or to at least get this game in real life other than the app. Also good for teachers to get for their kids or anybody who works with kids and parents for their kids. Good for all people, kids and grown ups and will challenge anyone to not have a lazy brain. Also there doesn't seem to be any bad bugs or defects in the app. And seems to run pretty good. 5 stars for sure from us.
We were introduced to the card game about 12 years ago, and our sister and we each kept a deck in our purses, just in case a party or bored moment cropped up. Now we have it on our fabulous iPad! A couple of things we would love to have: 1) ability to keep listening to iPod music. 2) stats that evaluate how long it takes you to find each type of SET (for instance, 1-2-3 solid squiggles of the same color is easier to see than an all-different set…) 3) different backgrounds… Even all-black… We're tired of the smeared burl wood background. We have only EVER found ONE really super-rare bug (it happened when the final 15 cards in a Classic Full Deck game was no-set… An extreme rarity!) which we will email to you… And that bug just requires that the game be reset. :) Excellent programming. We were initially a little hesitant about the price ($7.99) but after buying it for ourselves, gifted it to our boyfriend, too.
Set is a natural fit for the iPad. The slick visuals and clean UI make for a much smoother gaming experience than with the traditional SET deck of cards. Since the cards are dealt out automatically after a set is identified, everyone has an equal opportunity to scan the cards for another set without having to worry about the advantages/disadvantages of manually dealing cards. And the No Set feature is great! The game forces you to find that difficult set no dealing extra cards just because you cant find it! The game is perfect for multiple players 4 can play very easily. And the single-player modes are great when you need a quick-fix of the game when no one else is around. With all of the various gaming modes available, the game is well worth getting, especially when you consider it is cheaper than buying the traditional SET game.
Im a big fan of the card game and this version doesn't disappoint. It would be nice if you could change the background color to something other than that brown.
This is our face new app! We have the card set but never pulled them out to play solo. This app makes it very difficult to stop but we are not overly concerned about our addiction just yet. We think it's a good workout for our encephalon.
We like the game interface a lot, both for single- and multiplayer modes. However, there appears to be a problem with this "81" card deck: we played solitaire classic mode, found 26 sets, and the game ended with 9 cards still on the table. By our math, that means there are 26×3 + 9 = 87 cards in this 81-card deck. That means there are duplicates of some cards being dealt, which somewhat spoils the authenticity of the game. We have a feeling the programmers did this for some practical reasons, but nevertheless, the game is not quite true to the original.
The music you are forced to hear really is stupid. Could the default be off? The game signs us in, could it remember we want sound off? And why music anyway? Whatsa point ? Sets have zero musical content. Annoying. But worse, this company has no feedback channel! No email! No comments section. So all we can do is write a review. The GAME IS WONDERFUL! Daily mind exercise. LOVE IT. HATE THE DUMB GONG MUSIC.
An option to hide the timer would be very welcome. Having an ever-present timer turns a leisurely game between friends or with oneself into a some kind of competition against the clock. When one is simply playing with the cards, one doesnt have to actively try to ignore the changing timer.
Purchased and downloaded on our iPad Air. Wanted to use on another device since it is smaller (Mini) and wasn't listed on our purchased apps. So deleted on Air hoping it would be available in our purchased apps. No such luck….had to purchase again to get onto our Mini. And now it's not on our Air anymore. Not happy. LOVE the game, play with our students, but feel ripped off by the company. Purchased twice but still only have it on one device. Why can't we use on multiple devices? Why didn't it stay in our purchased apps.
Great game with a simple concept, fun for playing on your own or with friends.
This card game works perfectly for the iPad and the app takes advantage of the touch screen for great multiplayer games. There is a wide variety of single player modes too, our favorite being arcade where you find a certain amount of sets in a given time to advance to higher levels and gain more time. We only wish there was a way to make the default deck stay advanced as it can be a pain to pick it every time. Also, there should be a way to turn off the Facebook features if you don't want to use them. But both of these are minor annoyances to an amazing iPad app, it's definitely worth the price.
Set is a party game for those who prefer fast action and pure skill. Playing with others is the most fun, but you have to practice up so you can dominate next time! SET Pro HD lets you play with up to three other players, or hone your skills solo, playing against the clock. Facebook integration allows for easy bragging when you pull off some amazing set finding and nobody was there to see it. Touch screen is perfect here, since you play just like with real cards. In SET everyone sees all the cards all the time, so there's no awkward turn taking or looking away as in other multi-player card games on iPad. SET Pro HD is also a great way to teach your family and friends how to play SET. It includes the basic and advanced decks.
We've always loved playing Set and this app provides lots of new addictive versions of the game. We especially enjoy the Sprint version and could play it for hours.
For so long our family and our friends have been playing the SET card game and we all enjoyed it so much. But how exciting, we just discovered that SET can now be played on the new iPad what a HIT!!! WE LOVE IT. Our game evenings are becoming a total SET war. The many different challenges on this new device are incredibly exciting and fascinating at the same time. Got SET? Just get it.
Really enjoy playing Set on the iPad. We are new to the game and we are loving it! Running out to get a deck of Set cards the weekend. We had no idea that it was a card game too.
Finally we can play SET as fast as we can think. No waiting for dealing cards and can get points for a NO SET which Im pretty good at with the card game. When multiplayer is clicked, Jane and we can compete on equal footing since neither of us has to deal. We also both love the Arcade Solitaire game thats one of the game options, and were very completive (stats ALL rankings hold our highest scores). Also used the tutorial on the basic deck to teach our five year old. Wonderful.
We've played the card version for many years but this iPad version is Smoking Hot!!! They packed so much into this App that we'll be playing it for a long long time. We particularly like playing Sprint SET with using just 3 features. After hours of play, we've managed to find Sets at a rate of 2 every 3 seconds. At that rate you feel like your flying through the cards. It's quite amazing seeing new cards come in as the found sets go out. Visually Stimulating to say the least. The best iPad game we've seen so far.
We love Set. Ive played the card game for years, so had to get it for our iPad. Well Set on the iPad is fantastic. We really feel a whole new excitement after so many years with our familiar favorite. Its hard to explain, but our hands fly over the iPad touching the cards and as Sets fly off and new cards are replaced our hands just keep flying and flying. Its a new experience when we played with the Set cards we would have to deal the replacements, which made a natural pause that paced the game. Thats gone on the iPad, which makes playing Set even more addictive. We love the Solitaires (Im by ourselves a lot). The stats allow us to challenge ourselves. We can play any version over and over again with one click and try to beat our last score. Im still trying to figure out the best way to hold the iPad to play fastest. This version is also multiplayer, and we cant wait to get together with friends and play. Good job Set.
This is a solid implementation of the card game SET for the iPad. While the game itself is great and all of the cards look wonderful, we would like to see the UI for the main menu cleaned up to look a little more professional and be easier to use. This is minor however and should not dissuade you from purchasing the game. One very important feature that we would like to point out: if you are colorblind, you can now play SET! The publishers included easy to distinguish alternate card colors for colorblind players! We are not colorblind ourselves but several of our fellow board gamers are and this is a huge leap forward in game design. Hopefully more publishers will recognize this possibility when bringing older games to electronic devices.
We're hooked. All the stuff the other reviers said, we agree wholeheartedly. Why the 4 stars? Do you care? Lol. Well we're gonna tell ya anyway. We like to play the classic mode with advanced cards. We don't care about the clock ticking, we just want to find all the sets. As good as we are, that takes a long time. For 7.99 we'd like to be able to save our classic game that deals 81 cards before it ends, EVEN, if we have to exit the app. So if the devloper would please enterprise a game save, not just a pause, we will be eternally grateful, re-review and add a star. Thank you.
This game was no doubt, worth the money we spent on it. We had fun while stimulating our mind with this challenging game. We never get bored with all of the modes with in this game. It is too bad that the high scores aren't displayed, we would like to know how good we are compared to others. We loved "playing against the clock" and the multi payer option was very fun. It feels as if you are playing the game with real cards because of the HD affect. We look forward to future updates. :-).
We enjoy this game. It is challenging and fun but way too expensive for what it is. This a very simple find and match game with s hefty price tag on it… Other than that, everything is peachy.
We love this game as a card game. When playing with cards you can add a card when there are no sets. In this iPad game you can't add a card when there are no sets, instead you have to start the game over. It happens four out of five games.
User feedback from Apple App Store
App Details
- Version: 1.11
- Size: 28.53 MB
- iOS: 8.0 or later
- Languages: EN
- Content Advisory:
- Developer: PlayMonster LLC
Last updated: 31st July 2018 | Genre: Card, Family | Developer: PlayMonster LLC